Tuesday, April 27, 2004
Egg Factory Scrambles to Market PocketMate
By Duncan Adams
The Roanoke innovation center may
be on the verge of hatching its first product to reach
the marketing stage.
People might kick themselves and exclaim, "Why didn't
I think of that?"
That's one reaction the innovation-focused folks
at The Egg Factory in Roanoke anticipate if and when
their "PocketMate" ends up on store shelves.
The company announced Monday it is working with Fortune
500 company Avery Dennison Corp. to develop and manufacture
PocketMate.
"It is a breakthrough innovation but when you
describe it, it's so obvious," said Jim Currie,
chief operating officer for The Egg Factory.
In fact, it's so obvious, said Currie, that he won't
yet fully disclose what the heck the PocketMate is
or how it will work.
The Egg Factory provided this description: The PocketMate
is "intended to provide a unique, hassle-free
means for carrying and storing personal or valuable
items, such as identification and money, and for secretly
storing tracking devices to protect children and loved
ones."
On its Web site, Avery Dennison describes itself
as a "global leader in pressure-sensitive technology
and innovative self-adhesive solutions for consumer
products and label materials." Consumers find
Avery Dennison's products at office supply stores and
its labels attached to grocery products.
In addition, Avery Dennison manufactures radio frequency
identification labels, in which information is electronically
embedded into a "smart" label, as well as
a host of other products. The company has operations
in 44 countries and employs about 20,300 people.
The Egg Factory is a small, Roanoke-based company
founded by inventor Ron Blum. Its focus is developing
innovative products it can license or sell to a manufacturer
that will take the product to market.
Currie said The Egg Factory has "filed a series
of patent applications to protect this product." He
said the idea for PocketMate emerged during The Egg
Factory's annual Innovation Challenge, a paid summer
internship during which teams of college students compete
to dream up innovations and to develop associated marketing
research, business models and business plans.
Founded in April 1999, The Egg Factory or a partner
has not yet taken a revenue-producing product to market.
Currie said he believes PocketMate could reach the
marketplace in 12 to 18 months.
